Pablo Álvarez Núñez

Pablo Álvarez
Personal information
Full name Pablo Álvarez Núñez
Date of birth (1980-05-14) 14 May 1980
Place of birth Oviedo, Spain
Height 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Youth career
1989–1998 Lugo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1998–2001 Sporting B 52 (6)
2001–2006 Sporting Gijón 160 (25)
2006–2012 Deportivo La Coruña 85 (5)
2008 → Racing Santander (loan) 18 (1)
2012–2014 Lugo 47 (4)
2014 Langreo 13 (0)
2015 New York City 8 (0)
2015 → Wilmington Hammerheads (loan) 3 (0)
National team
2005–2008 Galicia 3 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:38, 9 September 2015 (UTC).

† Appearances (goals)
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Álvarez and the second or maternal family name is Núñez.

Pablo Álvarez Núñez (born 14 May 1980) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right midfielder.

Football career

Born in Oviedo, Asturias, Álvarez started his professional career at neighbouring Sporting de Gijón, making his first-team debut on 19 May 2001 in a 1–2 home defeat against Real Betis in the second division[1] and going on to appear in 161 league games. At Gijón he earned the nickname Tibu (diminutive of Tiburón, shark in Spanish) for his goal celebrations, in which he pretended to have a shark's fin in his head.[2]

Álvarez also participated in the resurrection of the unofficial Galician national team in December 2005, playing their first game after 75 years, against Uruguay. He signed for Deportivo de La Coruña on a Bosman transfer in August 2006.

On 3 February 2007 Álvarez played his first league match for Depor, against RCD Mallorca,[3] also his La Liga debut at the age of nearly 27. He had suffered a serious leg injury while still at the service of Sporting, in April 2006,[4] and was eventually loaned to Racing de Santander in December of the following year until the end of the season.[5]

After being relatively used in a Cantabria side that achieved a first-ever qualification to the UEFA Cup – netting in a 2–0 away win against CA Osasuna on 13 January 2008 –[6] Álvarez returned to Galicia and Deportivo. Scarcely used during 2008–09 he profitted from a rare start to score the game's only goal at Athletic Bilbao, on 18 April 2009;[7] he made his debut in European competition on 18 February of that year, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–3 loss at AaB Fodbold for the UEFA Cup,[8] and was sent off in the second leg for an eventual 1–6 aggregate score.[9]

In the 2012 summer, aged 32, Álvarez joined CD Lugo in the second level on a two-year deal, returning to the Galicians after playing youth football at the club for nearly a decade.[10] On 2 September 2014, he signed with UP Langreo in the third tier;[11] however, after only six months, he moved abroad for the first time in his career, signing with New York City FC on 6 March 2015 after a trial period.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "El Betis gana con comodidad" [Betis wins easily] (in Spanish). El País. 20 May 2001. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  2. ↑ "El "tiburón", corazón rojiblanco" [The "shark", red-and-white heart] (in Spanish). La Voz de Galicia. 6 February 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  3. ↑ "El Depor hace daño de penalti" [Depor hurts from the penalty spot] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 3 February 2007. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Pablo Álvarez se rompe la pierna y estará ocho meses de baja" [Pablo Álvarez breaks leg and will miss eight months] (in Spanish). La Voz de Galicia. 23 April 2006. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  5. ↑ "Pablo Álvarez ya entrenó con el Racing" [Pablo Álvarez already trained with Racing] (in Spanish). El Diario Montañés. 28 December 2007. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  6. ↑ "Osasuna 0–2 Racing Santander". ESPN Soccernet. 13 January 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  7. ↑ "Athletic Bilbao 0–1 Deportivo La Coruña". ESPN Soccernet. 18 April 2009. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  8. ↑ "El Deportivo se inmola" [Deportivo sets itself on fire] (in Spanish). Marca. 18 February 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  9. ↑ "Ni rastro de la remontada" [Not a trace of a comeback] (in Spanish). Marca. 26 February 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  10. ↑ "Pablo Álvarez firma dos cursos por el Lugo" [Pablo Álvarez signs for two seasons with Lugo] (in Spanish). La Voz de Galicia. 18 July 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Pablo Álvarez jugará en el Langreo, el Marino ficha a Pastor y el Avilés, a Berna" [Pablo Álvarez will play in Langreo, Marino signs Pastor and Avilés, Berna] (in Spanish). El Comercio. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  12. ↑ "New York City FC sign veteran midfielder Pablo Alvarez". New York City. 6 March 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2015.

External links

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